Star People

Chapter 70

Going Down in Flames

Jan 2^nd, 16 AE…

More than 1,000 km off the Merdov southwestern coastline…

On the bridge of the Missouri, Mark could only let off a sigh as he watched the Kryte warships begin to ascend even higher. He knew what was about to happen.

“Captain! I’m reading a sudden surge in energy levels from the Kryte vessels!” Ensign Gatsbu announced. “I do believe they’re powering up their weapons!”

And here we go again! Would-be conquerors who don’t know who they’re messing with!

Mark nodded and immediately began barking out orders. “SHIELDS UP! RED ALERT! ALL HANDS TO BATTLE STATIONS! ALERT ALL ALLIED SHIPS TO PREPARE FOR COMBAT!”

Sirens blared all over the Missouri as every crewmember went to their assigned posts. In the engineering section, Ensign Jokabar ran to his workstation as the meson/anti-meson reactor powered up to combat status. In just a few seconds, the star battleship was ready to fight.

Just as Harken received word that the crew was ready, Gatsbu called out.

“Captain! They’re attacking!”

High above the allied fleet, the Kryte ships pointed their guns downward and opened fire. The projectiles were shaped like cannonballs that were wrapped in blue energy. They came down towards the Missouri, Sath and Dwarf vessels like some deadly meteor shower. Each faction did what they could to weather that storm.

For Mark’s ship, it was very little to be concerned about. The scanners already told him that the ‘fireballs’ were semi-solid projectiles made from low-grade plasma. They wouldn’t have a chance of penetrating the Missouri’s shields. Heck, they would barely scorch the hull if he had the shields down.

“Maintain our position, Ensign.”

“Aye, Sir!”

The enemy shots slammed into the barrier and exploded with considerable force. However, the defensive screens showed no signs of faltering as each hit was easily shrugged off.

“Sath vessels are taking evasive actions!” Lieutenant-Commander Harken announced.

“The Zigalen is putting up its Rune Shield.” Commander Reelan added.

The Dwarf Rune Shield was the dwarves’ version of the defensive barrier. They had engraved the hulls of their ships and were able to instantly strengthen the steel and other materials to 20 times their original durability. The major downside to this was that they couldn’t keep feeding mana into the runes for long periods of time.

“Prepare for impact!” Captain Lortaz Mergot cried out. His bridge crew tensed up as their Rune Shield was put to its first combat trial by fire.

The projectiles hit the upper hull with substantial impact, causing a series of loud, clanging noises as they hit the surface and exploded. Each impact made the runes flicker for a moment before returning to their bright hue. When the smoke cleared, the upper hold revealed only tiny dents and scorch marks. The overall hull integrity had not been compromised.

The same could not be said for the Sath. Despite having upgraded their vessels from wooden sailing ships to steam-powered, late World War II-era metal ones, their hulls and decks weren’t impervious to the enemy projectiles. Several cruisers and destroyers were hit and took considerable damage as their decks and superstructures were set ablaze.

However, that did not mean that they weren’t going to fight back.

“Load turrets 1 and 2 with armor-piercing rounds!” Captain Jacet Rikoran of the cruiser Fire Rage cried out as he barked orders from the bridge. “Set the guns for maximum range and elevation! We’re going to knock those bastards out of the air!”

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High above the allied fleet…

On the flagship Zelos, Admiral Nikar Crodes looked at the Missouri through a crystal viewer with a bit of concern.

“Why hasn’t their lead ship been damaged? I’m certain that some of our destruction spheres were direct hits!”

“Admiral!” One of the bridge crew called out. “I’m reading some kind of protective barrier surrounding the lead ship! That might be the reason why our spheres couldn’t destroy it.”

“Admiral!” Another crewmember called out. “Those surface ships with the dragon-symbol flags are now aiming their guns at us!”

Crodes let off a snort of disdain. “Let them waste their ammunition! We’re too far up and out of range! And even if they could reach us, then the astro-shield will render their efforts as useless!”

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“FIRE!”

On Rikoran’s command, his cruiser let off a barrage of six, eight-inch shells. At almost the same time, the other Sath ships fired off salvos at the airborne target. Most of their shots fell short as they couldn’t reach that distance and altitude. However, a few from a Sath battleship did manage to reach their target. This was achieved by showing off its port broadside and flooding the starboard side. This gave the guns the extra elevation they needed.

The targeted Kryte Battle-Airships raised a very faint barrier around themselves. Unlike the Missouri’s defensive screens, this shield did not deflect the shots, but allowed the shells to pass through it. However, the projectiles slowed down considerably as if some force had caused most of their kinetic energy to be drained off. By the time the shells reached the hulls, they merely bounced off and fell towards the ocean, leaving nothing but large scratches.

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On the Missouri…

“Well, that was interesting.” The Catian Third-In-Command remarked. “The enemy actually possesses very crude, kinetic-dispersal fields.”

“Could it stop one of our kinetic rounds?” Reelan wondered.

Harken looked down the readouts through his chair’s holo-monitor. “One of the secondary guns… if we set the round to 10%... maybe.”

“Load forward main pulsar guns.” Mark said with a calm, but deadly tone. “Set kinetic rounds to 20% power.”

“Captain, I think that might be a little excessive.” Ensign Gatsbu pointed out.

“The enemy should thank me that I decided to use kinetic rounds instead of the anti-proton beams.” Reelan’s mate said. “I’m getting tired of having to contend with these arrogant, and ignorant would-be conquerors, especially since we’re still holding back. It’s time to take the kid gloves off.”

The Velor helmsman glanced at his superior and saw the determined expression on Delan’s face. He nodded, and said, “Forward main pulsar guns armed and ready, Captain!”

“Target those ships on the port and starboard sides of the enemy flagship and… FIRE!”

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The Kryte fleet…

“Admiral, the enemy lead flagship is aiming its guns at us!” The helmsman announced.

“Hmpf! Have they learned nothing? Their shells are useless against our astro-shields!”

“They’re firing!”

“I said it before, they won’t…!”

KA-BOOM! KA-BOOM! KA-BOOM! KA-BOOM! KA-BOOM! KA-BOOM!

Admiral Crodes’ boast was cut short as the Missouri’s kinetic rounds plowed their way through the astro-shields of six vessels without any substantial loss of their forward momentum. All six airships were enveloped in huge, fiery explosions, virtually getting vaporized. To the disbelieving eyes of the other Kryte crews, half a dozen of their mighty airships became nothing more than tiny, scraps of falling debris.

“Airships Regala, Sendour, Venoro, Matgu, Kendar, and Richton… have been destroyed.” The helmsman said in total shock.

“WHAT THE HELL HAPPENED?!” Crodes roared. “WHY DIDN’T OUR ASTRO-SHIELDS STOP THEM?!”

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The Missouri…

“The best way to deal with a kinetic-dispersal field, is to just hit them with something a lot faster and harder.” Reelan stated as she turned to her husband with a smile. “Simple, but effective.”

“Let’s see if those idiots got the message.” Mark said as he smiled back.

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The Kryte flagship…

“Apparently, the enemy flagship is able to fire rounds at a much higher speed and power.” The navigator announced. “They’re too much for our astro-shields to withstand!”

“Damn it!” Admiral Crodes slammed a fist on a nearby console. “I didn’t think those savages would have guns with that kind of power! Very well, then! We still have the advantage of being able to soar through the air, so the countermeasure is simple! We’ll just move out of range of those surface vessels and continue to bombard them with our Destruction spheres! Helmsman, take us up to maximum altitude! Relay my orders to the rest of the fleet!”

“Aye, Admiral!”

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The Missouri…

“Captain! The enemy fleet is now gaining altitude!” Taichen stated.

“Are they retreating?” Harken asked.

“No, Sir! They’re simply moving upwards.”

The Kyteeri Second-In-Command turned to her superior. “It looks like they’re trying to get out of range of the Pulsar Guns.”

“Most likely they intend to continue bombarding us from a higher altitude.” Harken added. “Not like that strategy is going to work against us, but I am concerned about our allies, the Sath and Dwarves.”

“We could shoot them down with some anti-ship missiles.” Reelan suggested.

“Or we could call in an airstrike from the Lexington.” Harken added.

Mark pondered for a moment, and then shook his head. “I don’t want to waste ordinance or fighters on these pompous conquerors. I’d say that we’ll get our point across by showing them how outmatched they are by just the Missouri itself.”

“Yes, I would agree that would be a serious blow to their morale and egos if a single vessel got the best of their much-vaunted Conquest Fleet.” The Catian Third-In-Command agreed.

Mark nodded as he turned to his communications officer. “Tell the Sath and Dwarf vessels to stand by and watch for any enemy forces heading towards the Merdov continent.”

“Aye, Captain!” Lieutenant Visera nodded as she began transmitting the message.

“Ensign Gatsbu!”

“Aye, Captain?”

“Take us up to the same altitude as the Kryte Fleet!”

“Aye, Captain!”

The Mighty Mo began rising from the water and into the air as its anti-gravity systems were engaged.

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A full fifteen kilometers above the ocean surface….

Admiral Crodes had a confident smirk on his face once he was told that all his ships had reached their maximum altitudes. He gazed at the landscape of clouds and marveled at the superiority of Kryte technology. Only they could be able to achieve such a feat, especially with another innovation, the pressurized internal chambers.

“There’s no way for that ship’s guns to reach us at this height!” He said with all the confidence of the world. “Send word to all airships to prepare for high-altitude bombing! We are going to blow those ships out of the water!”

“But Admiral, what about that enemy flagship?” One of his junior officers asked. “Their protective barrier is more powerful than our astro-shields! Our destruction spheres had no effect on it.”

“We are not going to use destruction spheres! We shall be using the annihilation bombs! “

“But Admiral, isn’t that total overkill?”

“It’s been proven that destruction spheres are ineffective against that ship’s barrier! So, if we use annihilation bombs, we could destroy not only that ship, but also all the other vessels in that fleet, all in one fell swoop! There will be no escape! Prepare for full-scale bombardment!”

“Admiral!”

“What is it?”

“Something is coming up fast from the surface!”

“What?!”

“It’s big! And it’s gaining altitude at a rate faster than our best airships! It’ll break cloud cover in a few seconds!”

Just as he finished speaking, the prow of the Missouri poked through the clouds, followed by the rest of the star battleship, some 80 kilometers away from where the fleet maintained its position. Everyone in the Kryte Conquest Fleet was in a state of pure disbelief as they found themselves staring at the enemy across a sea of clouds in the stratosphere. What was worse was that the Missouri was showing off its broadside with its main turrets swiveling about to face in their direction.

“I-Impossible! It… can’t be!” The admiral stuttered. “How is it possible for the enemy to have a Battle-Airship of their own?! Did they also discover Divine Anti-Earth Energy?”

At that point, the communications officer spoke up.

“Admiral, the enemy flagship is hailing us again.”

Crodes could only nod as he continued to gaze upon the Missouri.

“This is Captain Mark Delan of the Star Battleship Missouri. To the supreme commander of the Everlasting Conquest Fleet of Kryte! Your previous actions have already designated yourselves as hostile! However, you are given this final opportunity to call off your invasion and return to your point of origin. If you refuse, then the Missouri will destroy your fleet!”

“One ship against more than seventy?!” Crodes said indignantly. “You overestimate your capabilities! Your guns are powerful, and your shield is impressive, I will admit. I will even say that I am impressed that your nation possesses an airship that could nearly rival our own! However, you seem to forget one crucial difference! You are but one airship and we are many! Your shield cannot possibly hold out against all of us! With but a single command, I could order all my ships to fire on you and send you plummeting down in flames! In fact, I think I will! And once I have destroyed you, I shall wipe out that fleet and lay waste to the Merdov continent!”

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On the Missouri…

So, he’s chosen destruction over defeat. So be it!

“It’s your funeral.” Mark said simply to the enemy commander before cutting off communications and addressing his Velor helmsman again. “Ensign Gatsbu.”

“Aye, Captain.”

“Prepare Main Pulsar Guns, charge anti-proton beams. Target all enemy ships but leave the flagship alone.”

“Aye, Sir… anti-proton magazines charging… anti-proton beams ready.”

Mark took a long, deep breath before letting off a tired sigh as he remembered back to his conversation with the Prime Directors an hour before the battle.

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Flashback…

“No mercy, Prime Directors?” Mark asked as he and Reelan spoke with the Council via holo-viewer in his private quarters.

“You heard correctly.” Nasaak said with a very grim tone. “If this fleet clearly demonstrates itself to be hostile, then we do not expect you to pull any punches.”

“Judging from past experiences; it appears that the majority of this world’s inhabitants only understand force. Our attempts to display discipline and control are being misunderstood as signs of weakness.” Benjamin added. “We must make the message clear that we will not tolerate such acts of aggression.”

“Therefore, we have agreed for you to exercise what is termed as gunboat diplomacy.” Anida stated.

“As one of your Earth leaders said, speak softly, but carry a big stick.” Nerto commented. “But in this case, you will speak loudly, while brandishing that stick.”

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End of flashback…

Mark then gathered himself and said, “FIRE!”

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The Kryte Flagship…

“Admiral, the enemy flagship is firing!”

“Full power to the astro-shields!”

“They’re not projectiles, they’re some kind of beam…!”

Before he could finish, nine blue-white beams of pure destruction sped across the skies and slammed into the astro-shields of several ships. Their shields instantly failed, and five ships were vaporized. The beams didn’t even stop as they continued to onwards to destroy six more vessels. With a single volley, eleven ships were annihilated. Then a second barrage came and wiped out another ten ships. Then a third volley took an additional dozen. Even though the anti-proton beams were not at full power, using them was still considered as massive overkill.

At this point, the admiral was in a state of complete denial and disbelief as his Conquest Fleet was being slaughtered. Damage reports constantly came in as each ship was obliterated. They tried to fight back by firing their destruction spheres, but they were still ineffective against the Missouri’s defense barrier as it absorbed and deflected everything that was thrown at it.

“NO! NO! NO! THIS CAN’T BE HAPPENING! WE ARE THE EVERLASTING CONQUEST FLEET OF THE KRYTE! WE CANNOT BE DESTROYED AS EASILY AS THIS! IT’S IMPOSSIBLE!”

However, the Missouri continued to fire without mercy. Finally, after what seemed to be an eternity, (though it was just around 30 seconds), the Free Land battleship stopped its bombardment.

“Have they run out of power or ammunition?” The Kryte Admiral asked as he saw an opportunity present itself. “This is our chance! Have every airship in fleet focus its entire arsenal at that cursed flagship! We will overwhelm its astro-shield and send it down in flames!”

There was a long stretch of silence as no one on the bridge acknowledged his commands. This got Crodes’ temper riled as he shouted out again.

“DID YOU NOT HEAR ME?! HAVE ALL VESSELS IN THE FLEET FIRE ON THE ENEMY FLAGSHIP!”

There was another long stretch of silence before Crode’s subordinate, Captain Stexor Raggs spoke up.

“Admiral… there is no fleet.”

“WHAAAAAAAAAAT?!” Crodes looked through the viewports and on the crystal viewer for signs of the once proud, seventy-plus strong fleet.

There were some trails of smoke, indicating where some had gone down, as well as some pieces of debris still falling, but that was it. Only his flagship remained in the sky, facing off against the Missouri. And all three of its main turrets swiveled to point directly at it. All it would take was a single command from Mark and Crodes’ ship would join the rest of the fleet into oblivion.

“No… it can’t be! Not… the entire fleet… our airships…”

Crodes sank to his knees in utter despair. Over seventy airships, more than three thousand brave men had been erased from existence. All by one ship, the Missouri.

-------

On the Missouri’s bridge, Mark let off another tired sigh.

“I do believe we’ve made our point.” He turned to his communications officer. “Hail the enemy ship.”

“Hailing frequencies open.”

“This is Captain Mark Delan to Admiral Crodes. You are to return to your point of origin and give your government this message. Free Land will not tolerate any further acts of aggression from the Kryte. There will be no negotiations. Acknowledged?”

There was a brief period of silence before Crodes replied in a quiet and subdued tone.

“Acknowledged.”

With that single word, the Battle-Airship began to turn about and make its way back to the Continent of Krytis at top speed. Soon, it disappeared over the horizon.

The battle between the Everlasting Conquest Fleet of Kryte and the Missouri had ended, with the fleet suffering near-total losses.

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The Council of Prime Directors….

After reading the reports of the battle, the Prime Directors began discussing their next steps toward the Kryte.

“Well, when we told Captain Delan not to pull his punches, he certainly didn’t.” The Velor Director noted.

“So, why didn’t he destroy the enemy flagship?” Sierg asked.

“We needed at least one ship to return back and give them Free Land’s message.” Viska pointed out. “It’s made even more impactful if the flagship was spared while all those under that admiral’s command were destroyed.”

“So do we wait for their response?” Benjamin asked.

The was a bit of silence before Nassak shook his head. “No. Not this time.”

“Nasaak?” Nerto asked. “What’s wrong?”

The feline Director took a deep breath before explaining. “I’m tired of just waiting for these idiotic, would-be conquerors to react and make grave misconceptions about us. I think it’s time to put our foot down and get our intentions across the first time around.”

“So what you’re suggesting is..?”

“I believe we should be the ones to make the first strike. We will not be reacting this time. We will be proactive and shut down the Kryte menace before it can spread.”

To be continued…